[April 20 update: looks like the end is nigh for the Hitler Meme.]

No matter what side you take in the debate as to whether or not Theravadan nuns should be ordained — is it progress, or is it a bending of rules that have time-tested reasons? — you have to admit: the fact that it’s now been addressed in an update of the infamous (and often funny) “Hitler Meme” is remarkable. (And sure to offend some.) Watch it here:

[It IS worth noting that in the Hitler Meme, having a particular stance assigned to "Hitler" does not necessarily equate the holder of said stance with Hitler, but with being unreasonable. Some further examples: here, and here. There's a ton of 'em.]

So, where do you stand? Check the ongoing conversation at SunSpace for more.

BIG thanks to the great Sumi Loundon Kim for pointing this one out.

What’s next, “Rick-Rolling” critics of the Dalai Lama?

I’m a little late on this one, being that I’m just back from a meditation retreat — it’s best, they say, to take a little time before jumping onto one’s email, etc, to make your post-retreat “re-entry” a bit easier. But when I saw that my dharma-brother-from-a-different mother Konchog Norbu had sent me an email that said, simply, “This one’s for the Horse,” with a link, I had to open it.

And so here it is, “Jessica Simpson Loses It in Buddhist Temple,” a scene from the singer and pretty person’s new show, in which she tries to learn what beauty means to various cultures:

You know, though, I can’t really say anything bad about this. At least she went. And hey, I can’t say I was much better in more than a couple of moments during this past weekend! So, yes, this one really is for The Worst Horse — and by that I mean, the worst horse in all of us. Because we all have “a little more work to do.”

Giant, GIANT thanks to Konchog Norbu for sending this clip, via the blog, “Truth is Within: Just Another Buddhist Monk’s Weblog.”

You may recognize its initial title-card as a reference to Penelope Spheeris’s infamous documentary series about punk and metal, The Decline of Western Civilization.

I want to see this!

Via Huffington Post:

“…it’s clear that this Buddhist monastery is like no other, for this handful of monks live with some of the deadliest animals in the world…”

OK, lolcats they ain’t… but these Thai tigers and their Buddhist monastic keepers do deserve to be seen.

Thanks to Sam DeWitt for finding them and passing them on…

There’s a whole sub-strata of comedy known as “cringe comedy.” (Think Elaine on Seinfeld doing her “little kicks” dance, or The Office, or Curb Your Enthusiasm.) And when it comes to Buddhism and cringes, there’s no shortage of those either. Following up on the very unfunny Yogi’s Treasure Hunt, the Horse presents some of the most cringe-worthy, Dharma-Burger-tastic videos to be found on the web.

We start off with one submitted by reader Matthias S., who writes: “Just found a (in my opinion not really funny) video which describes a common misinterpretation of karma — namely that karma has something to do with a balancing out of good and bad deeds.” Here’s the video:

Next up: College Humor’s “Facebook Buddha” video.

How many times did you cringe during that? Bet you lost count.

Next up is a music video from the Thai boy-band, “Buddha Bless.” Yee-gads:

Finally, the last one (for now) follows up on the idea of “Buddha Bless,” and proves Mad magazine’s adage, “You never can win with a bigot.” It comes from the classic American sitcom, All in the Family (1971-1979). AitF practically invented (and perfected) cringe comedy, and here, Archie Bunker does his ignorant best to answer the the age-old question, “What do the Chinese say when they sneeze?”(Warning: Archie’s language was always offensive, and it’s still as potently so today.)

Go, Meathead!

Stay tuned for more — if you can take it.

[Here's another "Dharma-Burger Classic" from our old, defunct blog. But maybe it's new to you?]

In late May (2007), Reuters reported that Café Press, which sells shirts and other merchandise online, pulled some of these due to pressure from the Thai government.

The offending items? “G-string underwear and T-shirts for dogs” which bore an image of the Buddha. (The news agency would have done well to be a bit more clear—the company was in fact enabling an on-line seller to purvey underwear for humans, as well as shirts for dogs.)

It’s a common Thai belief believe that our canine friends are, in fact, inferior to us humans. I for one can’t say that I agree—I think it’s safe to say that you’ll never, ever see a dog hawking cheap bedroom-wear on the internet, offensive or otherwise.

…Speaking of dogs: we stumbled upon this shot by Vicki Rogers, and just loved and wanted to share it:

The verdict is in:

Does a dog have Buddha-nature?

Most definitely.

Huge thanks to reader Amelus for sending this tasty bit of weirdness. Its source is the Buddhist teacher Luang Por, who seems to be affiliated with DMC. No, not DMC of RUN-DMC (though, can you imagine?), but instead the Dhamma Media Channel, a Thai TV and web operation whose tagline is pretty heavy: “The Only One.” Well, whoa.

(Amelus also sends this morsel of a Dharma-Burger. As he suggests so succinctly and sarcastically: “Zen: Japanese fast food!” Thanks again, Amelus.)

Following up on “Bizarro Thai Ronald McDonald” (a Dharma-Burger for the ages), reader JM writes: “A friend who’s been to Thailand tells me the Michelin Man does wai/anjali [more commonly known as gassho] there too.” Lo and behold, it’s true, as seen in this graphic from the Thai Michelin site:

I always liked that little guy…

Thanks, JM! (And, just to be fair, here’s a link to Jalopnik’s coverage of him from ‘06.)

On Dispatches, his online journal, punk-godfather (I think he probably hates that term) Henry Rollins files a brief report from his July ‘08 trip to Thailand. One sentence especially caught the Horse’s eye:

“I got some interesting photos of a McDonald’s that has some rather obscene Ronald McDonald statues.”

Could Old Man Hank be referring to our friend, Bizarro Thai Ronald McDonald? Seems pretty likely… and if you don’t know BTRMcD, you can meet him here.